And They’re Off!
After 10 months of planning, training and meticulous preparation, our inaugural Roxy crew are about to set off from the Canary Islands to fulfil their dream of rowing across the Atlantic together in our brand new flagship 12 person ocean rowing boat, Roxy.
Some snippets from the crew’s blog that sum up the past few days:
“It’s quite tricky to fill a blog with the words to properly capture the events and feelings of the week before rowing across the Atlantic Ocean. The emotions have been running strong, with nerves and excitement churning together, and the preparation has been extensive, keeping us very busy. Charlie and Dawn, leading us on our row, laid out a comprehensive training programme to ensure we are all ready to take on this incredible challenge.
We set our eyes on Roxy on Wednesday morning, and she looks magnificent! We were given some time to reacquaint ourselves with her, before getting our heads down for a navigation class. Day 2 started with a First Aid course, and we got to grips with what medical equipment is available on the boat. Next, we took Roxy out for a row, which felt brilliant. It’s easy to tell the hard work that Charlie and the Rannoch Adventure team have put in to the boat fit out, and Roxy just feels joyous to row. That evening, the Mayor of Tenerife come to bless our voyage with pink champagne. Friday was a critical training day, including sea survival theory and practical, and our radio course examination. On Saturday we savoured the massive task of unpacking and repacking the boat.
Now, a week after we left the UK, we are sitting on the marina wall, watching Roxy bob up and down on her mooring with just a few hours until departure. All that’s left to do is row across the ocean!”
The Rannoch Adventure team wishes Charlie, Dawn, Cat, Ciara, Ian, Louise, Mark, Rupert, Sian, Simon, Sophie and Ted a safe and happy Atlantic crossing.
Author: Nicola Douglas
To read more, check out all the Roxy blogs.